A Barnet wood recycling company has been ordered to pay fines and costs totalling almost £10,000, following a prosecution by London Fire Brigade. The company had a major fire at its premises in 2005.
On 16, July 2005, an accidental fire started in the company’s main wood stack, causing closure of nearby railway lines and a number of trunk roads, including the A406 and the M1.
At the height of the incident, around 100 firefighters and 20 fire engines were needed to control the blaze at the premises off Brent Terrace, Cricklewood. Firefighting activities went on for four days. The land is leased by Wood Recycling Services Ltd.
The premises contains a large amount of waste wood from local building sites, which is then chipped down and transported away from the site for furniture manufacture.
A Brigade inspection at the premises in May 2006 found the size and volume of flammable material appeared to exceed fire safety requirements and that necessary consent from the London Fire Brigade had not been obtained. Evidence from a land surveyor confirmed the flammable material did exceed the fire safety requirements on two of the company’s wood stacks. One of the stacks was over four times the legal limit and the other was over five times the legal limit.
Summonses were served by the Brigade on Wood Recycling Services Ltd in January 2007 for two fire safety breaches. The company pleaded guilty to both of the summonses on 3, July 2007 at Brent Magistrates’ Court. The company was fined £750 per offence and also ordered to pay a total of £8,432 in costs. The maximum fine per offence is £1,000.
The court also ordered that any stacks maintained by the company cannot exceed the legal limits without first obtaining permission by the Brigade.
The Brigade’s Assistant Commissioner for Community Safety Steve Turek, said: “Brigade officers made several visits to the site before this had to be resolved in court. I would like to thank all of the officers and personnel who made this prosecution successful, and remind those responsible for properties and premises of the need to abide by the law and carry out a proper fire risk assessment.”
Note to editors:
none
Members of the media can obtain further information from the press office on:
telephone number: 020 8536 5922
email: press@london-fire.gov.uk
